Father’s Day fishing treated many people well! The fishing has been good all across the region and we’ll hit on it today!
Lake Sharpe
Lake Sharpe has turned the corner and fishing is getting better and better! Right on schedule, Sharpe is becoming one of the hottest places to be along the Missouri River.
The usual culprit, West Bend, is receiving the brunt of the action. Walleye fishing has been good and the smallmouth bass have been popping as well. If you’re looking for a place to hide from wind, the stretch along LaFramboise Island out of Down’s Marina in Pierre has been very good. The fish are quality with several 16-18s and some fish even bigger than that being caught as well. The stilling basin is also still producing some fish and the bluffs along Pierre have also been firing off some fish as well.
For presentation, they haven’t really been picky, but certain presentations are catching more fish than others. We’ve been doing best still with those .8″ Mack’s Lure Smile Blades, chartreuse has been the top color but pink and gold have been putting fish in the boat as well. Plain chartreuse hooks with a bead are also bringing fish, but of course your standard red hook has been catching fish too. Gold and silver size 0 Colorado blades have also been producing fish.
The big news around the presentation world is the switch to crawlers is upon us. Minnows are a staple of early spring fishing, but as water warms the crawler begins to take over. Crawlers were out producing about 3:1 when we decided to make the switch exclusively to crawlers. It didn’t really seem to matter what snell they were on, they caught fish!
Lake Francis Case
Case is still producing some good fishing too. The water is coming down, slightly. I wouldn’t say it’s normal by any means, but we’re trending in the right direction. Still please continue to be aware of your surroundings. Trees, other debris and other hazards continue to be a concern.
As far as the fishing, the flats are tough. The reason being, the high water has flooded a create deal of trees and other vegetation, this new structure is pretty deep (relatively) too. The fish have moved in there and are enjoying their new playground, but the anglers really aren’t able to get to them.
The bluff bite can still produce some good fishing. Finding submerged stump fields that are safe/doable to fish also is a good business decision. The tailrace is also always a good place to look for fish as summer rolls on.
As far as presentation, you’re still looking at the same presentations as outlined above. It is getting close to the time to start switching to those #2 and #3 Colorado/Indiana blades though, certainly worth experimenting with as you spend the day on the water.
Lake Oahe
The fishing is really picking up on Oahe. The fish are quality and they’re there for the biting! Anglers are catching fish all along the reservoir and the big lake is certainly worth giving a check out!
Eastern South Dakota
The bug army is in full force in eastern South Dakota lakes. There are still fish to be caught though! By this point, almost all the anglers have taken on the aggressive approach and casting cranks has been the choice for many anglers. Whether you’re looking to go from shore or cast from a boat, hitting those shorelines in the evening with crankbaits continues to put nice fish in the net.
Small Ponds/Fort Pierre National Grasslands
The small pond bite is one of the most overlooked fisheries all across the region. The Fort Pierre National Grasslands ponds as well as other various small ponds/dams have been on fire for panfish. Weeds and grass are beginning to become established, but the bite is very good. More to come on this topic……
Lake McConaughy
I might as well just copy/paste this section from previous reports. Fishing continues to be on fire down at Big Mac. Bob Propst Jr and Mason Propst of Propst Professional Anglers continue to prove just that. If you’re looking to put some dandy fish in the boat, Mac is the place to be!
Iowa Great Lakes
Chris Seylar once again has an excellent report from the IGLs for us, thank you Chris!
The walleyes continue to be good on Spirit Lake. The bite is also pretty good on East and West Okoboji as well. Crankbaits and live bait rigs from shallow into the teens for depths has been the ticket.
The panfish are starting to move out, so you’ll be wanting to think weed lines. The bluegills have been good on West, East and Spirit. The yellow bass size class is really good on East! You’ll just want to keep moving until you find them, but weedlines are always a good start.
The bass fishing is okay, but it is starting to slow up on the post spawn bite. The goes for both largemouth and smallmouth on all three lakes.
The bullhead are actually snapping pretty good on Spirit, but the water temps are starting to get a little high.
On Clear Lake, the walleye are okay as are the crappie, the yellow bass bite has been good though. Silver Lake is also producing some pretty good walleye fishing depending on the day. The walleye fishing is also okay on Lost Island. The crappies and bluegill have been pretty good as have the yellow bass.
News and Notes
There’s an exciting event coming up this Saturday, Catapalooza! Catapalooza will be taking place at Oahe Downstream Recreation Area from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. There will be shore fishing and local anglers will be taking anglers out on their boats as well! I’ll be there all day doing whatever it is I do so come on out and have some fun! Who knows, the next state record catfish may be caught!
I mentioned last week the South Dakota Elite Walleye Series event on June 29 was moved to Chamberlain. Well scratch that, it’s been moved to Platte Creek now. So once again, just keep that in mind when making your plans.
What’s Coming Up
We just wrapped up a three part series dissecting bottom bouncing fishing. I hope you found this beneficial and were able to put a few extra fish in the boat! As I reflected on this series, I thought about how it really only applies to folks who have boats.
Well for the past few week’s I’ve been talking about these “underutilized fisheries” that are dotted all across the landscape. I decided it’s time to show these fisheries some love! Whether you have a boat and are just looking for relaxing time or are powered by your own feet this next series applies to you!
We’ll be talking “Small Pond Strategies”, many of us grew up fishing these ponds. I am one of them. I want to highlight some ways to land a few more fish out of these hidden gems. Whether you’re a boat owner looking to go back to your roots or you’re anchored to land I hope you find something beneficial out of this upcoming series. Stay tuned, because I’m honestly pretty excited!
Related Information
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Awesome report best out there!